Hey,

high school junior looking into trombone as a college major here.

I currently am renting a Yamaha tenor trombone and I own a King tenor trombone, but I have been advised to look into purchasing a trigger trombone.

Which brands/models would any of you recommend, and where would you advise I purchase it?

thanks in advance. :biggrin:

As a major you will need a large bore with F-attachment. There are an awful lot of good pro level instruments out there. One caveat: some college profs have a preference for certain brands. If you show up with the "wrong" instrument he can make your life miserable. For that reason I usually recommend waiting until you get a chance to have a lesson and interview with the trombone prof at your new college before plunking down cash on a new horn.

That said, if you don't plan to major in music, your options are a lot wider. And you don't have to go the full route into large bore -- you can go to a medium bore.

I also recommend buying used because you will get a lot more horn for your money. Which brings up the second point: what is your budget? For $7500 you can buy nearly anything you want, but I personally think that's a bit too much. For $1500 you can get a nice used pro level horn that will take you through college and out into whatever direction you want to head.

A few suggestions:

Bach 36B (medium) or 42B (large). Choice of open wrap is optional. 42's come with a variety of valves: 42A (Haagmann), 42T (Axial/Thayer), 42K ("K" valve, which may or may not have ergonomic issues) as well as the 42B rotary.

Benge 190F (or the convertible C). There is a medium bore 175F. Some like the 165, which has a more conventional wrap but is considered a "step-up" horn

Conn 88H

Getzen 3047

Holton 158, 159, or even 150.

King 4B, 5B (these may be looked down upon by the Classical snobs, but I played both in orchestral settings successfully, though not at Boston Symphony Orchestra level).

Yamaha 648, 682, 620, 882 (large bore) 646, 684, 640 (medium bore).

There are others to consider and I'm sure there will be a lot of other suggestions.

I’m surprised how inexpensive used trombones can be. There’s currently a Bach 42BO on Craigslist for $1850, about $1300 USD.

Buy used from your local music store. Any mechanical issues should be sorted, and they should be able to steer you in a good direction.

If you purchase a decent used pro F-attachment trombone (such as those mentioned here) for, say, $1,500 and it isn't "right" for you after a couple of years (e.g., your trombone prof prefers a different brand), all is not lost. You simply sell your trombone for about what you paid for it (there won't be much more depreciation) and buy something else. Owning a trombone is not a lifetime decision!

If you are near a decent music store, see if they can give you some guidance (though they will probably prefer to sell you something new and shiny (and more expensive).

1st: Renting a trombone is wasting money! Buy used, IF it is a good quality trombone----i.e, not trashed, you won't loose much money...if any!

Pretty much, what Bruce said.

At this stage, any professional or semi-pro horn will do. A .547 bore (large-bore) tenor is probably the most appropriate. Shires has their Q series; Getzen is the parent for Edwards and has many great horns. You can’t go wrong with a pro model Bach, Conn, Yamaha, Rath, etc.… Trombones are comparatively inexpensive next to tuba, horn, woodwinds. You can always sell it, and if you like it you can keep it.

When you are getting ready to graduate, and around the time you take auditions, talk to the trombone prof where you intend to go to college/university. They might have strong equipment preferences. Then buy what they suggest, or as close to it as you can.

I don't understand the a large bore is a must mentality. Not everyone is suited to a large bore. I struggled for years playing large bores, because as a bass bone player i "had to" have a large. Since going to a medium & small bores my tenor playing has drastically improved.

I agree with Pezza, a medium bore helps my tenor playing and sound dramatically. I’m primarily a bass trombonist, but play tenor just about everyday and with my old bach 42 i had such a hard time getting a good tenor trombone sound. I had a benge 165F and struggled on that as well. I’m not sure if it was the change of mindset that was giving me trouble or the instrument, but i sold those and i now play on a bach 36. So much easier to find my tenor sound on that.

[quote="Pezza"]I don't understand the a large bore is a must mentality. Not everyone is suited to a large bore. I struggled for years playing large bores, because as a bass bone player i "had to" have a large. Since going to a medium & small bores my tenor playing has drastically improved.[/quote]

It's a leftover from an antiquated system. If you're attending a school that doesn't have much of a commercial program but a standard classical program (orchestra, wind ensemble) then a large bore is what you'll likely need. In an ideal world, you would have a small bore and a large bore just have your bases covered. From what I've seen of bassbone players in college, nobody pays much attention to what tenor you use.

A story or observation i should've started with, when i played at Cal State Long Beach with Jeff Reynolds trombone choir. All of the performance majors had large bore trombones. Most of the performance majors at another local university have large bores at the behest of the trombone teacher. Ed majors I've seen play whatever because there's a different expectation (for whatever reason).

So to sum up this long dribble, large bores are the universal expectation from most university trombone studios, especially if you're a performance major.

[quote="Elow"]I agree with Pezza, a medium bore helps my tenor playing and sound dramatically. I’m primarily a bass trombonist, but play tenor just about everyday and with my old bach 42 i had such a hard time.[/quote]

Same here. I had a Bach 42 with a wide slide and it never felt right. I now have a Shires .547 with a regular width slide and it just feels better in my hands and helps me with the mental aspect of downsizing.

As a separate yet related instance, I took to a Yamaha 691 right away.